US will now apply to study China’s moon rock samples: Nasa
www.scmp.com
In exception to congressional Wolf Amendment, the space agency is encouraging applications to its Chinese counterpart.

This news is going absolutely viral in China.

Basically NASA has decided to make an exception to its 2011 “Wolf Amendment”, which forbids NASA from communicating with China, in order to formally request permission to study recent Chinese moon samples.

People in China are like “are you freaking kidding me?”: the US banned China from the International Space Station and then forbade any collaboration in order to kill Chinese progress in space exploration. As a result China had to re-learn everything on its own and, against all odds, succeeded: it’s now the only country in history to have its own national space station and it’s doing its own exploration missions in space.

But now that they have something that the US doesn’t have - these recent moon samples - the US suddenly makes an exception and is happy to communicate. Even more unreal, in their request they have the guts to write this: "This allowance [to exceptionally communicate with you] applies specifically to Chang’e 5 mission samples; the normal prohibition on bilateral activity with PRC on Nasa-funded projects remains in place”. In other words, this is purely one-sided, we only make an exception because it benefits us… The entitlement is absolutely unbelievable!

https://nitter.net/RnaudBertrand/status/1731137252913492000

  • darkcalling@lemmygrad.ml
    52·
    11 months ago

    China should counter offer something sweeping in terms of access and cooperation that they’ll never allow. It’ll make scientists of any conscience in the US even more uneasy with their country when it’s rejected and make the US look more pathetic on the whole.

      • Infamousblt [any]@hexbear.netEnglish
        291·
        11 months ago

        Ask the US that, they’re the ones who unilaterally agreed not to work with China. It’s fair for China to ask them to reverse that before cooperating.

        • ComradeSalad@lemmygrad.ml
          121·
          11 months ago

          You mean the US political class. NASA is the one sponsoring this blatant side step of the ban in a massive fuck you, in the name of science.

          Plus NASA side steps the ban commonly. They usually send samples to Vietnam or Taiwan, and the samples “””accidentally””” ends up in Chinese hands. Who study and then return the samples.

      • Tankiedesantski [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
        121·
        11 months ago

        NASA is a key pole in the US Military-Industrial Complex and should be opposed in all things. China should no more cooperate with NASA than with Raytheon or BAE or any other Westoid weapons manufacturer.

        Personally, I wish nothing except aborted launches and mid-air explosions for NASA. What little practical space knowledge we gain from it’s successes are far outweighed by the fact that it furnishes the Empire with space capabilities.

  • Munrock ☭@lemmygrad.ml
    27·
    11 months ago

    • Accept the application from the US

    • Make a similar, corresponding request of the US

    • Do both of the above loudly and publicly

  • Addfwyn@lemmygrad.ml
    16·
    11 months ago

    If it were up to me, I would functionally laugh at the US . The audacity of the US to ban China from the ISS and then turn around to beg for a favour when China outdoes them (yet again).

    This is, admittedly, one of many reasons I am not a head of state.

    I could definitely see China being the bigger man here honestly, but they should also be able to leverage it into getting something in return. If they can get something worthwhile, I could see them allowing it. At the very least, they should lift the formal billateral prohibition.